FREMANTLE utility Corey Wagner is set to miss the start of the finals series after being subbed out of Sunday’s 15-point win over the Western Bulldogs, but Sam Switkowski has escaped injury after ending the game on the bench. 

Wagner hurt his pec in the third quarter and was replaced by dual Brownlow medallist Nat Fyfe. 

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The 28-year-old will undergo scans when he returns to Perth, but Dockers coach Justin Longmuir is bracing for the flexible midfielder-defender to miss at least a few weeks with a tear.

“At this stage it looks like he might have giving a little tear to his pec, so not ideal,” Longmuir told reporters after Sunday’s win over the Western Bulldogs. 

“The severity we will work through and see when he is available. I’m not a medico, but it might cost him a few weeks. 

“He is disappointed, like all players are. He is such a great team man. He didn’t show it after the game and let it take any shine off the performance. That’s disappointing for him.”

Switkoswki was helped off Marvel Stadium by two trainers after a collision in the last quarter, but Longmuir said the pressure forward could have returned if required late. 

Fremantle (16-7) could have finished as low as ninth with a loss, but will now host an elimination final in week one.

"We seem to play our best footy against the better teams, as you saw for periods of the game tonight," Longmuir said.

"We've had seven wins against the top nine sides now and our players will get a lot of belief and confidence out of that.

"The contested game seems to suit us, so I'm looking forward to it."

Bulldogs coach Luke Beveridge felt the Dockers' size and strength at both ends was the difference on Sunday, and conceded his side had almost certainly blown their finals chance.

"There's a lot of disappointment in all of that," Beveridge said.

"Everyone's as flat as a s**t-carter's (hat), there's no doubt about that."

The Dogs aren't entirely out of the finals race yet. If Essendon pulls off the most unlikely of wins against Gold Coast at People First Stadium on Wednesday night, the Suns will miss the top eight and the Bulldogs will sneak in. 

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But Beveridge made it clear he wasn't expecting the injury-ravaged Bombers to save his side. 

"Essendon beating Gold Coast is as long a shot as there is, so we anticipate that our season's probably done," Beveridge said. 

"We've just got to now support the rest of the boys who have got a Footscray (VFL) finals series ahead of us."

Beveridge said the Bulldogs would train as usual in the hope of an Essendon upset on Wednesday night.

"We'll carry on like that slim chance is there," Beveridge said.

"We'll turn up Tuesday and have a flush run and process some things, and then we'll obviously be attentive to what happens Wednesday."

Western Bulldogs veteran Adam Treloar remains eligible to play for Footscray in the VFL finals and is expected to face Frankston next weekend after being overlooked for selection on Sunday, following a nightmare year on the injury front.

The 32-year-old managed only four senior appearances due to a series of calf strains, but was pushing to play a role in the finals after returning in the VFL last weekend, where he amassed 40 disposals in 84 minutes game time, but needed at least one more game to prove himself for selection.

“He got through the game last week, and he has actually been sick for the last few days, so even if we did pick him he wouldn’t have been able to play,” Beveridge said.

“He is here this afternoon, so hopefully he comes up and finishes up the year [at Footscray] and play out the four quarters; that’s really important for him and for us.”

Bulldogs coach Luke Beveridge said it was important the 2024 All-Australian midfielder banks some games for Footscray next month to prove his body can still handle the rigours of playing.

“Adam at his best is one of the first handful picked. The assessment at the end of the year will be around is he physically capable to go on or whether the same challenges will remain next year. We’ll work through that with him.

“If you were guaranteed that  he could play 15 games of AFL footy he would definitely go on, but not sure whether we get that guarantee, so it’s going to be something we all have to process."